People often say their senses stand on end.
There are times when all five senses a human possesses seem to heat up, as though every part of them is shuddering.
When someone is so utterly beyond your level, it can instead feel strangely quiet. But every so often, there are people whose very presence makes you feel a wall.
For me, at first, the people of Sky-Crushing Palace had been like that. People I felt I could never defeat.
Or perhaps it was the bearing of absolute masters who had reached their own level.
That was the level of the people I had seen.
This is.
It was no different now.
RUMBLE—!!!
I could feel it.
What is this?
I could feel it far too clearly.
What kind of being the thing in front of me was. What level he possessed. And along with it—
I can’t win.
I understood, the moment I saw him, that he was someone the current me could not defeat. His level was different.
Where had I felt something like this before? Ah.
It came to mind. If I had to compare it—
Sword Demon.
Sword Demon, one of the Eight Demons. It was the feeling I had gotten the moment I faced him.
It was not much different from what I had felt then. Even now, when I had grown incomparably stronger than I had been at the time.
“Khuhuhuhuhu.”
The man laughed. Even that laughter was laced with energy. The Green Forest bandits froze as they stared at their dead vice chief, and the escort guards all trembled in fear before that overwhelming presence.
A being who emitted a level simply by existing.
This is.
An absolute master. Something that could be called that without any hesitation.
“Girl.”
The giant man looked at Mo Yong Yeongsun and spoke.
“From now on, you will have to become mine.”
His thick finger pointed at Mo Yong Yeongsun. At those words, Mo Yong Yeongsun furrowed her brow as much as she could.
“I apologize, but—”
The being that had appeared. A monster who seemed impossible for anyone to defy.
Even so, Mo Yong Yeongsun did not back down.
“For me to belong to you, I do not even know your name yet.”
“Oh?”
“What is your name?”
“How amusing.”
Ssssss.
He approached while spreading his energy. At that moment, those who appeared to be Mo Yong Family martial artists gripped their swords and gathered around Mo Yong Yeongsun.
“...Stop.”
Seeing that, Mo Yong Yeongsun hurriedly stopped the martial artists. I stopped too when I saw it. If Mo Yong Yeongsun had not stopped them, I would have stepped in.
If they hadn’t stopped, all of them would have died.
The instant the man moved, they would have been wiped out. If he had stretched out his hand, that was.
“You’re quick-witted, and your head works well. Your spirit isn’t bad either. It would be strange not to desire you.”
“...Thank you for thinking well of me.”
“Yes, you asked my name? I have more than a few names I’m called by, but... for now... hm...”
The man rolled his eyes as if thinking. While I was watching that—
[Primal Origin Blade....]
What?
Dohyang spoke.
Primal Origin Blade?
Wait. If it was Primal Origin Blade—
Sky-Crushing Palace.
Those so-called Four Kings of Sky-Crushing Palace. Among them, it was the title of the martial artist who had kept Dohyang with him.
The instant I heard that, I examined my opponent.
...I can see it.
Why had I only noticed now?
The energy of Sky-Crushing Palace visible behind Primal Origin Blade’s back.
Only now did I see it.
...One of the Four Kings.
The four martial artists the Palace Lord kept.
It seemed that bastard was one of them.
“Primal Origin Blade. Call me that.”
“...Master Primal Origin Blade.”
Mo Yong Yeongsun adjusted her posture. With proper courtesy, she faced Primal Origin Blade with calm eyes.
“I do not know what a master like you wants, or why you have come such a long way. Would you tell me your purpose?”
“My purpose...”
Primal Origin Blade tilted his head. Then he looked at Mo Yong Yeongsun and smiled.
“Originally, my purpose was what was inside that carriage, but that has become secondary. It has no meaning now. My purpose is you.”
“...”
“I like you. Girl of the Mo Yong Family. Come with me. I will give you paradise.”
Paradise, was it.
Even at those words, Mo Yong Yeongsun’s expression did not change.
“...I—”
“Ah, do not worry. I am a rather generous man, so I have no intention of making you decide immediately.”
“What do you—”
“I will give you until the end of tomorrow. Decide by then. If you want, you may call your father, the White King. If you can call him, that is.”
Until the end of tomorrow.
He was telling her to call the White King?
Was this a location the White King could reach just because she called him?
Impossible.
Given our current location, it was absurd. No matter what she did, it was impossible for the White King to arrive within a day.
“What happens if I refuse?”
“Everything around you dies. Then I take you with me.”
“...”
Meaning there was no choice.
One way or another, he would kill everyone and take her.
At those words, Primal Origin Blade tilted his head.
“Then I shall come again tomorrow at noon. Ah, do not run.”
Primal Origin Blade’s gaze swept across every direction, as if he meant to memorize everyone here.
“I have no intention of letting even one person go.”
After saying that with a smile, Primal Origin Blade turned away.
“Ah, right.”
Then he turned his gaze for a moment, gripped the enormous blade in his hand, and—
WHOOOOSH—!!!
He split the air apart.
Then—
SLASH—!!!
“...!!!”
The necks of the Green Forest bastards around us fell off.
He had used hard aura to cut off only the Green Forest bandits’ necks with perfect precision.
“This is a gift.”
After saying that, Primal Origin Blade vanished.
His presence faded in an instant.
“...”
“...Lady.”
“Miss.”
The surrounding gazes turned toward Mo Yong Yeongsun. Her face was badly twisted, but I could not feel fear in her expression.
“Haa—”
A low sigh brushed through the area.
It was Mo Yong Yeongsun’s sigh.
“This has become troublesome.”
That was all she said.
It was as if those few words were enough to explain the current situation.
“...What should we do? Perhaps returning now would be—”
“Do you think that is possible?”
“...That is...”
The escort guard lost his words. No answer came.
“I do not think I can return.”
“...Lady, that is...”
“First, Guard Hyeon, please return to the family estate and request assistance.”
Snap.
She tore off the bracelet she had been wearing. Then she handed the torn-off bracelet to the guard.
“If you bring this bracelet, it should be fine.”
“Me?”
“Yes. That is an order. If you will not obey it, kill yourself right now.”
“...!”
She gave a chilling order as though it were nothing.
If he would not obey, he should kill himself.
The guard who heard those words was startled for an instant, but then he seemed to steel himself and nodded.
“...I accept your order.”
“Please hurry.”
The guard grasped the bracelet and leapt backward. His face was full of firm resolve.
After sending the guard away, Mo Yong Yeongsun looked around and spoke.
“Do not worry. You will not die. Rather, as he said earlier... running away may put you in danger.”
“...Then how are we supposed to proceed with the escort run?”
“We stop. I will think about what to do with the shipment before the sun sets and make a decision then.”
She would rest for a while.
After saying that, Mo Yong Yeongsun entered the carriage.
The atmosphere turned bleak in an instant. Many wore expressions that said they could not understand what had just happened, and even among those who did, most were simply overwhelmed by shock.
“What in the world... How did this...”
“Who was that master just now? If this happens, what becomes of Lady Mo Yong?”
“Is Lady Mo Yong the problem right now? Our lives are the problem.”
Everyone was confused and terrified by the aftermath Primal Origin Blade had created.
That was what it meant to be an opponent one could never defeat.
And in the middle of that—
What should I do?
How should I handle this situation?
I swept the area with cold eyes. Then I approached the Hao Clan martial artists.
There were three people in sight.
I spoke to one of them.
“Was this within your expectations too?”
“...What are you—”
“Sorry, but I’m not in a situation where I can focus on some pointless little act. Answer me quickly.”
“...”
At my words, the man’s expression changed.
“How did you know?”
The man’s true identity was the branch chief.
He was the man with a mole on his left cheek. I had noticed he was the branch chief this morning, but there was no time to explain every detail.
“Habits. Eyes. Various other things.”
And—
The state of the soul.
A soul could not be hidden.
No matter how much one hid what was inside, the essence of the soul remained the same. If I tried to find it, I could find it as much as I wanted.
Besides, I had intended to go along with the act unless there was a particular reason not to.
“I’m busy, so answer quickly. This. Was it within your expectations?”
“As if. There’s no way I could have assumed something like this. I didn’t know something like that would come out.”
“...You didn’t know?”
I spoke with a suspicious gaze. Seeing that, the branch chief gave a soft laugh.
The laugh was extremely irritating.
“Our prince must be quite flustered, hm? Seeing as you’re suspicious even when you know that can’t be true.”
“...”
She was right.
Normally, if I had thought about it with focus, I would have been able to judge this matter without much difficulty. But right now, my thoughts were not settling properly.
“Well, let each of us think what we will about that... First, fix your expression. It doesn’t suit you, prince.”
My expression.
At those words, I touched my face with my hand.
What did my expression look like right now?
I could not see it, so I did not know.
“If this was unexpected, have you come up with a way to deal with it?”
“Who knows. Is there really anything to come up with? That Mo Yong lady over there already came up with a good method on her own, didn’t she?”
Meaning she would not get involved.
Hearing that, {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} I frowned.
“How interesting. I had no idea our prince could make that kind of face.”
“You mean you won’t interfere?”
“This was not part of our agreement. My task was to see whether that shipment reached its destination properly, and to check the state of that shipment. Everything else has nothing to do with me.”
“Good words.”
I turned away.
It was not as if I was particularly offended.
After all, I had never had any expectation for those bastards to begin with.
Primal Origin Blade.
Thinking of him, I asked Dohyang.
“...What kind of bastard is he?”
I had heard a rough account, but I needed more information.
[...Why? Don’t tell me you’re planning to fight him?]
Dohyang spoke in a tone that was, unusually, faintly trembling.
“I’m still thinking. But I might need information, just in case.”
[Can’t you just not fight him?]
“Why?”
[...It feels strange to say this, but you’ll die.]
“Hah.”
At those words, a laugh slipped out of me.
It sounded like genuine concern.
Ridiculous.
Who was worrying about whom right now?
“You’re on their side.”
[Oh, come on. What does that matter now that I’m already dead? I told you, I only need to stay by your side. Even like this, as a dagger, I can feel your warm body heat....]
“Answer properly before I throw you on the ground and leave you there.”
[...What are you curious about?]
Her tail went down.
Seeing that, I spoke with serious eyes.
“Tell me everything. Do not leave out a single thing.”
Only then could I calculate.
Calculate how to kill that bastard, one way or another.
